
2024 was a rough year for me and 2025 is not off to a good start. For the last month or so I have been re-reading (again) Shelley Laurensten’s shifter series. It’s a comfort read, and my brain and heart didn’t feel like it could take anything new. But, I needed to get my first Cannonball read review out and I was feeling the pressure. So, I made myself browse Netgalley* to try and find something to get me started and the only book that appealed to me was Revenge Puck by L.A. Hart. I am not a sports fan (I get bored and tune out pretty quickly) but I really enjoy a good sports romance. Revenge Puck was the perfect choice for my first new book of 2025.
Revenge Puck is the story of Elle Townsend who is unexpectedly and unceremoniously dumped by hockey-player Christian Riley who she believed was her boyfriend. He thought they were just f*#$ buddies. Now Christian wants the freedom to f*#$ all the women who will be chasing after him when his team wins the championship. Elle is surprised and devastated. With the help of her best friend Audrey, Elle’s first act of revenge is to convince Christian’s nemesis, Preston Lawrence, to pose for a photo with her to show Christian she’s moved on with the one man he specifically said she couldn’t sleep with. Preston sees a chance to stick it to Christian, a man he loathes, off the ice instead of on the ice where the fighting him keeps landing him in the penalty box or out of the game. Their fighting now threatens Preston’s career, and his team’s shot at the championship. Soon, Elle and Preston are getting to know each other as their revenge romance starts to feel all too real.
There’s a lot I liked about Revenge Puck. While this is a romance, Elle feels very real and grounded outside of the relationships with the men in her life. She is confident in herself and her sexuality. She struggles with not being the expected model-thin beautiful WAG, but it doesn’t define her identity. Her conversations with Audrey show the strength of their friendship and I appreciated how Elle took Audrey’s advice to reframe her thinking about various situations. Preston is the character who experiences the more notable growth. The author slowly reveals Preston’s complicated family dynamics and why he is so enraged by Christian. Preston is challenged to let go of his anger and to find a life outside of hockey. All the emotional growth is balanced out by what is essentially a fun and lightly sexy read. I look forward to reading Christian’s redemption story in the upcoming sequel.
*Disclaimer: I received a free ARC of this book through Netgalley with the expectation of an honest review.